Too convenient?

Contrast this with the open-all-hours policy pursued by the major supermarkets, invariably
to the detriment of struggling local retailers, the advent of online deliveries and now the expansion of rival “click and collect” schemes which are taking customer convenience to new levels.

After Asda successfully launched this service, Tesco is now taking the fight to its major rival in its Yorkshire heartland by launching a rival scheme that will enable customers to collect their weekly groceries from Huntington School in York.

Many will raise their eyebrows and conclude that Tesco is taking its pursuit of profits a step too far and undermining competition on the high street. Others, meanwhile, will say this approach reflects the needs of modern lifestyles that have become increasingly hectic, and which have allowed the supermarkets to become so omnipresent.

Yet, at the end of the day, it is the customer – rather than any London politician – who will decide whether such advances are meritorious or not. And, over the past 30 years, shoppers have repeatedly sided with the supermarket – even if this has been at the expense of local stores which used to be so cherished.